Zev Porat

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Genesis 1:1... by Zev Porat

Genesis 1:1

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

You may be thinking to yourself, "How is this passage Messianic?" Remember, all the words of Scripture point to Messiah Yeshua in some way. Usually, it is in ways we cannot and will not readily see. This verse has a little of the obvious, and a little of the more obscure.

To better see some of the less obvious features of Genesis 1:1, let's see it in Hebrew:

áøàùéú áøà àìäéí àú äùîéí åàú äàøõ

Remember, Hebrew reads from right to left. This is how this verse would appear in a Torah scroll, with no vowel points. In a Torah scroll, the first letter (the far right) is enlarged as you see it here. This is the letter Bet. This enlarged Bet is important for a number of reasons that we will see.

The first word/phrase of the verse is ' b'reshit ', which literally means "in the beginning". Beth (Bet) is enlarged in Hebrew. The Beth means house. The purpose of creation is God wanted a house to dwell with man through His Son - Yeshua, The Messiah. The second letter is the 'Resh'. If we read the first letter in Genesis, which is 'Beth', and the second letter, which is 'Resh', together they spell 'áø' (Bar), which means Son.

So God wanted a house to dwell with man through His Son - Yeshua, the Messiah. Very interesting, the Rabbis teach in the Talmud that creation was for the Messiah (Sanhedrin 96).

Haifa outreach proclaiming the Beth (á)

Messiah of Israel Ministries was called by the Holy Spirit to proclaim The 'Beth' (á) in Haifa. As a group of believers were praying, Zev was walking up and down the streets of Haifa praying for who the Holy Spirit wanted him to talk to. An Orthodox man was approaching Zev's direction. Zev felt the Holy Spirit drawing him to share creation.

"Shalom," said Zev, and introduced himself. The man said: "Shalom, my name is Danny." Zev asked: "Do you live in Haifa?" Danny replied: "Yes, I study here in the Yeshiva (Rabbinic Bible School). Zev said to Danny: "That's wonderful. Maybe we can study together?" Danny was excited. Zev and Danny sat down and began to study the Word.

Danny amazed by the the Beth (á)

Zev began to read Genesis 1:1 and asked Danny: "Do you know why the first word (the Beth) in the Bible is big?" Danny said: "I've never noticed and I have no idea. We don't study this in Yeshiva..." Zev then asked: "What does the letter 'Beth' represent?" Danny said: "I believe it means house. " Zev then told Danny: "God created The World because He wanted to dwell in a house with us." Glory to Yeshua!

Danny's face changed. His face had a glow to it. Zev understood why The Holy Spirit called him to Haifa for this appointed time. Danny then said to Zev: "You are not religious. Were did you learn this?" Zev replied: "I was once religious like you and found God wants our heart. I study The Word of God and The Holy Spirit teaches me." Danny did not respond or move. The Holy Spirit was working on him. Zev then said: "God loves us so much He created The World because He wanted a house, and if you look at the first and second letters, it spells 'Bar' in Aramaic, which is His Son, the Messiah." Danny told Zev: "We don't study like this, it's not Jewish." Zev asked Danny if he believes the book of Psalms is Jewish?" Danny said, "Of course." Zev then opened the Bible to:

Psalm 2 -

1 Why do the nations conspire

and the peoples plot in vain?

2 The kings of the earth rise up

and the rulers band together

against the Lord and against his anointed,

saying,

3 "Let us break their chains

and throw off their shackles."

4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;

the Lord scoffs at them.

5 He rebukes them in his anger

and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,

6 "I have installed my king

on Zion, my holy mountain. "

7 I will proclaim the Lord's decree:

He said to me, "You are my son;

today I have become your father.

8 Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance,

the ends of the earth your possession.

9 You will break them with a rod of iron;

you will dash them to pieces like pottery. "

10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;

be warned, you rulers of the earth.

11 Serve the Lord with fear

and celebrate his rule with trembling.

12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry

and your way will lead to your destruction,

for his wrath can flare up in a moment.

Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

After reading Psalms 2, again we see the words "Kiss His Son" in the Hebrew text, 'Bar' in Aramaic. Zev explained to Danny: "In the Jewish Bible once again we see Son just like in Genesis. Danny then asked Zev: "But who is this Son?" Zev replied: "The Jewish Messiah who we just read about in Psalms, the same one who was the Creator in the beginning - Yeshua, The Messiah. Danny said: "I need to leave." Zev gave him contact information.

More heard about 'The Beth' and received Bible DVDs.

Praise Yeshua!

Please pray for Danny's salvation. We also pray he will share this with the other Yeshiva students and his Rabbi.

Zev continued to share The 'Beth' and the Love of Yeshua with other people. Many, many interesting conversations about The 'Beth'. Pray for all that received the Good News of Yeshua, The Messiah in Haifa.